Mercedes-Benz is reportedly planning a 4.70-metre-long counterpart to the C-Class as the first electric model in the ‘Entry Luxury’ segment. In terms of technology, however, the mid-size sedan will differ from the two current electric sedans EQS and EQE.
This is reported by Autocar with reference to Robert Lesnik, head of exterior design at the manufacturer. According to the report, the electric counterpart to the C-Class will be launched in 2024 as a CLA-sized four-door sedan with technologies from the Vision EQXX concept car and will be complemented by an AMG offshoot a year later.
This sentence referring to the C-Class and CLA may be a little confusing at first, but it hints that the electric C-Class (which could take over the model designation of the current EQC electric SUV following its impending demise) will be slightly shorter than its combustion counterpart. The current 206-series C-Class is between 4.75 and 4.79 metres long, depending on the variant. The current 118-series CLA comes in at 4.69 metres. The new model, potentially called the EQC Sedan, could therefore be a few centimetres below the C-Class.
The new Mercedes-Benz Modular Architecture (MMA) serves as the basis. This means that the new electric sedan could even offer more interior space than the C-Class despite slightly smaller exterior dimensions. Since there are currently no models based on the MMA, no technical data are known yet. However, it stands to reason that the sedan will be at or slightly above the level of competing models such as the Polestar 2, BMW i4 or Tesla Model 3.
Nevertheless, a C-Class counterpart based on the MMA would be a repositioning – as would the classification as ‘Entry Luxury’. Mercedes wants to build the ‘Top End Luxury’ models based on the AMG.EA from 2025 with Sindelfingen as the lead plant. The Bremen and Kecskemét plants will produce models of the MB.EA electric platform in future, namely, the ‘Core Luxury’ models. The Rastatt and Kecskemét plants will build the repositioned MMA platform models from 2024. Since the C-Class has so far been built in Bremen (i.e. the plant for the ‘Core Luxury’ products), the new sedan with the classification as ‘Entry Luxury’ would rather be an electric CLA – if the information from Autocar is correct.
Lesnik was a little more specific about the AMG offshoot planned for 2025, albeit only in the area of bodywork for which he is jointly responsible. The sportier model is to have active aerodynamics based on the EQXX, such as a movable diffuser and an active spoiler. It will also be interesting to see what focus Mercedes chooses for the design of the upcoming production sedan. In order to improve aerodynamics, for example, the EQXX study is only 1.35 metres high – but this is at the expense of passenger comfort, especially in the rear.
Mercedes had already announced in July 2021 that it would only introduce new electric platforms from 2025 – combustion models and hybrids will continue to be built on the current platforms, but there will only be new purely electric developments. The MMA was once announced as the last mixed platform that would be developed with a focus on electric vehicles but could also accommodate internal combustion engines, however, newer reports no longer mention this. What is actually true will probably only become clear when the platform or the first model is unveiled.
Keyword: Mercedes considers releasing mid-size sedan in 2024